Sri Lanka: tales from the Resplendent Isle

Just seven ornamental rooms have been fashioned out of this former residence in Colombo’s Cinnamon Gardens district, all steeped in both Sri Lankan heritage and stately glamour in equal measure.

Formerly the home of a traditional Sri Lankan village headman, scattered amongst paddy fields are luxurious detached villas with modern style furnishing, four-poster kingsize beds, a courtyard and private plunge pool. The newest additions are the spacious Deluxe Pool Villas - providing some of the largest private pool options on the island, they come complete with a grand bedroom, living area and outdoor terrace with pool overlooking the lush paddy fields, forests and lakes. Being an eco-friendly resort, guests are shuttled around in electric cars to its large infinity pool that overlooks the main Walawwa, the gym and the à la carte restaurant, Liya Wela. Canoeing and kayaking are available on the lake; other activities include cookery demonstrations, archery and horse riding.

A product from the days of British rule, this restored plantation became the world’s first tea bungalow resort. Four distinct residencies, decorated with period furnishings open directly onto flower filled gardens and contain wide verandas, freestanding baths and open fires. With a butler on hand to serve and draw your bath, enticing meals of western fare, traditional Sri Lankan cuisine and tea inspired dishes made to order, there’s a real sense of staying in an elegant private home. Here, pursuits range from tea factory visits and tastings, to mountain walks and mountain biking throughout the rich Ceylon tea gardens.

Bordering a saline lake with ibis and a beach where turtles lay their eggs by moonlight, the property provides accommodation for a maximum of twenty eight guests in the form of detached private cabins kitted out in rustic fashion with plunge pool and 42” LED TV. Dine in the urbane atmosphere of Basses restaurant, hidden in an evocative out-of-the-way location.There’s a swimming pool and cocktail bar. Activities are many and varied – join an all-day tour of Ruhuna National Park with its abundance of leopards, reptiles and birds; go humpback whale and dolphin watching or visit some of the numerous religious sanctuaries that dot the jungle landscape such as Kataragama.

In inimitable Aman style, each suite is impeccably furnished with features including an oversized bath tub, whilst a generous plunge pool and daybed awaits beyond the sliding doors. Overlooking the emerald sea is a forty seven metre pool, which is in turn overlooked by the panoramic restaurant where local seafood from the Indian Ocean is a speciality. For those who can tear themselves away from such indulgence, the resort makes an excellent base for exploring Sri Lanka’s National Parks.

Set within the ramparts of Galle Fort, the seventeenth century building retains much of its original character, the interiors graced by period furnishing – suites and chambers boasting polished teak floors, free standing bathtubs and four-poster beds, the windows looking out over the imposing hexagonal stone fort or the property’s mature gardens. Watch the world go by from the terrace before eating in The Dining Room, a colonial style restaurant with antique silverware and glittering chandeliers, whilst for sundowners the upstairs balcony is ever-popular. In the spa an Ayurvedic doctor is on hand to recommend treatments.